Hey Pylon - what is a bike in between a mountain bike and a road bike called? I'm going to try commuting on my bike this year, and in a perfect world I'd need a bike that I'll be able to ride on grass/dirt a bit as well as the road. I have a Specialized mountain bike that I love, but it has super beefy tires and is slow as balls. Is there something that you'd recommend in that $1000 range? I know you know Lake Bonavista - there is a bike shop in Avenida...are they any good?

Hybrid is what you are looking for, but I hate hybrids myself, because they usually have MTB gearing and shocks, which are useless on roads, and some sort of semi knobbed tire.. People underestimate how much of a difference road gearing makes in terms of the effort/speed equation. It's massive. On a MTB most people struggle to stay at 20 kph, on a roadie, that is cruising speed.

The category that I love is relatively new, fitness bikes. Essentially they are compact geometry road bikes, with a flat bar, and usually a carbon fork and a semi gripped 700 x 28 tire (which is fine on light terrain). And most of them have lower end road components, built to take a lot of abuse, and keep them a little less stealy.

The Devinci Olso SL I bought is awesome. 21.4 pounds, comfy and fast. I bought it at Lifesport in Kensington when I was growing frustrated trying to find one of these bikes locally at a fair price. The only thing I could find even close to what I wanted was the Cannondale Quick raw, which was $1500. This bike was $550 less, and it fit me and my needs better. Also Canadian made which is a big bonus with Devinci. Trek made a couple bikes that are similar, with worse components for close to double the price.

Go down to Lifesport, they have a ton of these styles of bikes, and unlike a lot of bike shoppes, they will give you a deal if you ask. I got 10% off the $950 msrp.

Hybrid is what you are looking for, but I hate hybrids myself, because they usually have MTB gearing and shocks, which are useless on roads, and some sort of semi knobbed tire.. People underestimate how much of a difference road gearing makes in terms of the effort/speed equation. It's massive. On a MTB most people struggle to stay at 20 kph, on a roadie, that is cruising speed.

The category that I love is relatively new, fitness bikes. Essentially they are compact geometry road bikes, with a flat bar, and usually a carbon fork and a semi gripped 700 x 28 tire (which is fine on light terrain). And most of them have lower end road components, built to take a lot of abuse, and keep them a little less stealy.

The Devinci Olso SL I bought is awesome. 21.4 pounds, comfy and fast. I bought it at Lifesport in Kensington when I was growing frustrated trying to find one of these bikes locally at a fair price. The only thing I could find even close to what I wanted was the Cannondale Quick raw, which was $1500. This bike was $550 less, and it fit me and my needs better. Also Canadian made which is a big bonus with Devinci. Trek made a couple bikes that are similar, with worse components for close to double the price.

Go down to Lifesport, they have a ton of these styles of bikes, and unlike a lot of bike shoppes, they will give you a deal if you ask. I got 10% off the $950 msrp.

Awesome tip there. I have been thinking of getting a road bike because right now I'm riding a tank of a comfort/hybrid bike and I'm sick of getting passed by pudgy guys on road bikes. (What can I say, I'm vain.) But I just can't bring myself to getting anally raped by Shimano to the tune of $1500 for the inflated price of a bike with their road bike series componentry.

I ride a Kona hybrid something-something branded "King of Bowness" by Bow Cycle. Don't know the exact details, but I have the receipt at home which has more details if someone is really, really interested.

It is the most expensive bike I've ever owned, costing around $800 in 2009. First bike I've owned with disc brakes, which are awesome, and the first bike I've had that fits me (60-something cm frame sounds familiar). It has presta valves which I didn't even know existed until went to put air in the tires the first time.

Sometimes I wish it had shocks. I even contemplated selling it last year because of the rough ride and a spine problem, but I stuck it out and put a big soft seat on it to help with that.

Awesome tip there. I have been thinking of getting a road bike because right now I'm riding a tank of a comfort/hybrid bike and I'm sick of getting passed by pudgy guys on road bikes. (What can I say, I'm vain.) But I just can't bring myself to getting anally raped by Shimano to the tune of $1500 for the inflated price of a bike with their road bike series componentry.

The devinci is still Shimano Tiagra/Sora mix, with a Truvativ crank, and to be honest, I wouldn't buy anything but a SRAM/Shimano/Campy equipped bike.

I was going to buy this, then put a flat bar and shifters on it, until I found the Devinci. But if you are looking for a road bike with the good Shimano components, comfy geometry, and you dont want to get raped, this is a smoking deal for a Shimano 105 bike. 105 components are basically the entry into the high end stuff. As good a the Dura-ace stuff for duraility/reliabilty/smoothness, just a bit heavier. I think it gets to your door for just under $1100 CAD and, their site guarantees no extra duty on delivery. The price in the cart, is the price to your door. From what I have read, it is an awesome bike for comfort/ rideability.

For you work commuters out there, how do you get around the hygiene/presentation issue. Do you roll in your work clothes? Change once you get to work? Don't you still stink even if you change?

I've always liked the idea of biking to work, but I know I'd be a sweaty pig after riding for a measly 10 minutes. The idea of having to change multiple times a day doesn't appeal to me, and it seems like most work environments wouldn't have shower access.

For you work commuters out there, how do you get around the hygiene/presentation issue. Do you roll in your work clothes? Change once you get to work? Don't you still stink even if you change?

I've always liked the idea of biking to work, but I know I'd be a sweaty pig after riding for a measly 10 minutes. The idea of having to change multiple times a day doesn't appeal to me, and it seems like most work environments wouldn't have shower access.

Don't know if I could do it without shower access. Some people can clean up ok in a washroom, I'm not one of them. I did survive a week of shower renovations once by showering before I rode and just towelling off when I got there.

I never ride in my work clothes (I'm 14km away from work, I suspect I'd wear through a pair of khakis in about a week doing that). I roll them up in my backpack and I look ok when I get here.

I am lucky and have a shower at work, so I have no problem biking the 15km to work. I ride a cheapo Trek bike ($500 or something) that's done just fine so far, but since it's a mountain bike I'm sure I have to work way harder to move quickly. I guess it's not too big a deal, since I get a better workout from it!

For you work commuters out there, how do you get around the hygiene/presentation issue. Do you roll in your work clothes? Change once you get to work? Don't you still stink even if you change?

I've always liked the idea of biking to work, but I know I'd be a sweaty pig after riding for a measly 10 minutes. The idea of having to change multiple times a day doesn't appeal to me, and it seems like most work environments wouldn't have shower access.

Most workplaces should be outfitted to handle cyclist commuters, with access to a shower.
I don't find I need to shower in the mornings, unless it was a really warm morning and I worked up a major sweat, but I'm only riding about 6km either way (I shower at home before I leave).
I keep a towel around at work anyway, because I still usually wet my hair/wash my face.
Changing once in the morning, and once in the afternoon isn't that big a deal.

I have a shower at work and a closet to keep clothes in so I don't have pack them every day. I do know some gyms downtown offer shower only services so you can get ready for work there? I also know some guys shower prior and then use baby wipes once they hit the office...

Hybrid is what you are looking for, but I hate hybrids myself, because they usually have MTB gearing and shocks, which are useless on roads, and some sort of semi knobbed tire.. People underestimate how much of a difference road gearing makes in terms of the effort/speed equation. It's massive. On a MTB most people struggle to stay at 20 kph, on a roadie, that is cruising speed.

The category that I love is relatively new, fitness bikes. Essentially they are compact geometry road bikes, with a flat bar, and usually a carbon fork and a semi gripped 700 x 28 tire (which is fine on light terrain). And most of them have lower end road components, built to take a lot of abuse, and keep them a little less stealy.

The Devinci Olso SL I bought is awesome. 21.4 pounds, comfy and fast. I bought it at Lifesport in Kensington when I was growing frustrated trying to find one of these bikes locally at a fair price. The only thing I could find even close to what I wanted was the Cannondale Quick raw, which was $1500. This bike was $550 less, and it fit me and my needs better. Also Canadian made which is a big bonus with Devinci. Trek made a couple bikes that are similar, with worse components for close to double the price.

Go down to Lifesport, they have a ton of these styles of bikes, and unlike a lot of bike shoppes, they will give you a deal if you ask. I got 10% off the $950 msrp.

Wow, thanks man.

I went to Pedalheads about an hour ago. I dropped my bike off and they're going to put new tires on (I actually opted for the semi-knobbed tires over slicks because there are a couple of spots on my commute where I'm going to have to go off-road), new higher handlebars, "comfort grips" (holy crap those seem awesome), tune up, etc. to partially roadify my mountain bike.

The Devinci Olso SL sounds killer. I'm going to see how the commuting thing goes - if my mountain bike isn't cutting the mustard I will check that out for sure. Thanks for the help!